General

1. What is Catalyst Camps and where is located?

Catalyst Camps offers children and youth Christian camps during winter and summer. A division of Cedar Lake Ministries, Catalyst Camps provides a safe, caring environment for campers to experience God, new things and meaningful relationships. Catalyst Camps at Cedar Lake Ministries is located 45 miles south of Chicago, Ill. in Northwest Indiana, just east of US-41 in Cedar Lake, Ind.

Cedar Lake Ministries and Catalyst Camps is an independent, non-denominational, evangelical nonprofit corporation which exists as an autonomous conference center and camp; a retreat and conference rental facility for Church-related organizations; and a Christian residential community with both year around and seasonal occupancy.

2. How do I get to Catalyst Camps?

Catalyst Camps at Cedar Lake Ministries is located 45 miles south of Chicago, Ill. in Northwest Indiana, just east of US-41 in Cedar Lake, Ind.

3. How can I contact Catalyst Camps? What are the office hours?

We would love to hear from you. Please use the contact information in this section to connect with us today.

Winter and summer camps both have lots of fun activities and focus on developing each camper’s faith in God. For summer camp, Catalyst Camps provides college-age counselors who care for each camper’s needs throughout the week. Individual registrations are most common, but we welcome groups as well.

For winter camp, we rely on church youth groups to provide adequate chaperones for their group, and the church registers together. We do welcome a limited number of individual camper registrations to winter camp. Please contact us at info@catalystcamps.org for availability and registrations instructions for individuals.

5. Can I receive financial assistance or a scholarship?

Our desire is that no child misses out on the camp experience because of financial reasons. Through the generosity of thoughtful and caring partners, financial assistance may be available for your child to attend Catalyst Camps. Learn more about scholarships ordownload a scholarship application.

Cedar Lake Ministries and Catalyst Camps could not function without the hundreds of volunteer hours that are given yearly. Volunteers have served through maintenance and housekeeping, food service, decorating, mailings and more. If you are interested in volunteering individually, with a group or with your family, please contact us.

If you hold a current LPN or RN license and would be interested in serving as a volunteer camp nurse, please visit our Staff Position’s page for more information.

8. Will boys and girls be in the same rooms?

No. During winter and summer camps, housing is assigned by gender. Furthermore, boys and girls are not allowed to be in each other’s rooms or hallways. Boys and girls are either separated by buildings or wings.

9. What about my child who has food allergies or other medical conditions?

We are used to working with campers who may have food allergies or other medical conditions (food intolerances, asthma, behavioral issues, diabetes, etc.). To best care for your child, please inform us on the registration form of any allergies or medical conditions so we can effectively prepare to provide great care for your child. If after reviewing your registration form we have further questions, our Program Director, Food Service Director or Camp Nurse may contact you prior to camp to ensure proper care will be provided.

10. What if my child gets sick or injured?

While sickness and serious injuries are rare and we do our best to keep camp a safe and pleasant experience for everyone, campers may develop a sickness or undergo injury. If your child has a persistent sickness (flu, high fever, etc.), we will request that the parent or guardian, listed on the registration form, take the child home.

In the case of an incident in which your child needs medical treatment (outside that offered by the Camp Nurse), every effort will be made to contact the parent or guardian, listed on the registration form, prior to treatment at a local hospital.

FAQs for Winter Camp

1. What is the schedule like for winter camps?

Check out a sample schedule for Catalyst Winter Camps.

2. What are the group check-in/check-out times for winter camp?

For Catalyst Winter Camps, groups should plan to arrive and check-in at the Office between 7-9 p.m. CT on Friday evening. The program ends after lunch on Sunday. Groups usually leave between 1-1:30 p.m. CT after eating and packing up.

If your camper would like to purchase snacks or a souvenir at Branches Snack and Gift Shop, we recommend bringing $10-25 for use at the camp store. For winter camp, students keep their money in their possession. We encourage students to leave the rest of their valuables as home since things can get lost in the midst of the high-energy activities common at camp.

The Branches Snack and Gift Shop is open at designated times for campers to purchase candy, pop or a souvenir. For summer camp, campers will turn in their money during registration to be kept in an account. We encourage campers to bring $10-25 for the camp store and to leave other valuables as home since things can get lost in the midst of the high-energy activities common at camp.

3. Will my child be able to call home or accept calls?

Campers will not have access to phones while they are at camp, unless they request to call home. In order to provide a great “away” experience for your camper/child, parents are asked not to call unless there is an emergency. The main reason for our “no cell phone” policy is to help alleviate homesickness challenges during the week.

4. Will there be a nurse on duty?

Yes. Safety is a priority, and we provide 24-hour emergency nursing care by a trained LPN or RN. The Camp Nurse also distributes prescription medications as instructed by the parent or guardian when the child is dropped off at camp. If your child develops a persistent sickness or is injured, we will call the parent or guardian, listed on the registration form, immediately.

5. What if I need to cancel?

For cancellations 14 days or more prior to the start of your child’s session, a refund of camp costs less a $50 handling fee will be offered. Less than 14 days, refunds are not available. However, you may call our office to transfer your registration to another camper or event.

6. May I send mail, care packages or e-mails to my child/camper?

Yes. We encourage parents to send mail or care packages or drop them off during check-in. Campers love to get mail from loved ones, even simple cards. You may also send them an e-mail using our online form. Campers are not able to reply to your e-mail but will enjoy receiving your message. Mail is distributed daily. If you send food, please pack it in sealable containers to ward off bugs.

7. When do the summer camp weeks start and end?

Overnight Camp: Check-in for overnight camps is Sunday afternoon from 5–6 p.m. Camps ends with a closing session, which parents or guardians are encouraged to attend, on the last day of camp at 10 a.m. The closing session lasts 30 minutes. More specific information will be sent to you when your registration form is received and processed.

Day Camp: Check-in for day camp is daily between at 8:30 a.m. and pick up is at 5:30 p.m. Please plan extra time for the first day you check-in. A half day option and early drop-off or late pick-up is also available.

8. Can my son/daughter be with his/her friends?

Yes. We love when campers bring their friends. (There’s even a discount for that!) Each camper can request to be with two other roommates. Roommates must be requested on your registration form. We will try to put campers together if they are coming with friends, but we cannot always guarantee that more than two friends will be put together.

9. What do campers do at camp?

At Catalyst Camps, we seek to offer activities and experiences where your camper will learn new things, cultivate meaningful relationships and develop a desire to know God.

Activities can include archery, tubing, drama, climbing wall, Gorilla Ball, canoeing, crafts, swimming, hiking, team-building, Black Hole slide, sports and kayaking. While we seek to have fun, our primary goal is for your camper to learn more about God and connect with Him in a deeper way. Through group sessions twice a day, your camper will be encouraged to worship God and will learn more about Him through engaging speakers that teach at the camper’s age level.

We also provide a daily devotional journal for your camper to use during TAG (Time Alone with God). Campers will pray, memorize and read verses from the Bible and answer reflection questions. (For our younger campers, the counselors help them work through their TAG journals.) Through this time, we pray that your camper will understand the benefit of TAG and develop a desire to meet with God every day. For more about the activities and schedules, check out our Overnight Sample Schedule or Day Camp Sample Schedule. You can also visit our Pinterest or Facebook page for photos of activities.

10. How does camp handle homesickness?

If a camper is homesick, we believe it is usually in the best interest of the camper to stay at camp. Our trained Counseling Staff will delicately encourage the camper to participant in camp activities with his or her fellow campers. We encourage the camper to focus on trying “the next thing.” Focusing on upcoming, exciting activities usually alleviates any anxiety or sick feelings the camper felt. If the camper stays until the end of the week, they usually forget about the homesickness and may be more confident to try and stick with new things in the future, like a new school, sport or club.

If the homesickness continues, Program staff and the Camp Nurse may also get involved. Finally, if a camper insists that they call home or if homesickness persists, parents will be called.

11. Can I stop by to see my child/camper?

In order to insure the safety of all campers, Catalyst Camps is a “closed” camp. That means that we ask parents not to visit during the week of camp if at all possible. If you must stop by camp for some reason, please check in at the office first to be directed to where your child is.

12. Do you have a bus that will pick up my child/camper?

We do not offer transportation to and from camp. There are some groups that come to camp on buses. If you are part of a group, please contact your group leader to find out more information about transportation.

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